by Brenna Lyons
Matthew nodded. “Then why Kyla and Joe?” he asked.
Molly shrugged. “Destiny. They were created for each other. Together they’re whole. They function where they couldn’t function alone.”
Josie leaned toward Molly again. “Is it over?”
Molly smiled. “The adventure is never over. If you mean the violence—” She got a faraway look for a moment. “Yes, it is.”
* * *
It didn’t take Matthew and Josie long to figure out that Sam was Samantha Allen, Kyla’s Gram. She was certainly busy with the Keating girls.
Molly told them that Kyla’s job was done. She and Joe could finally find peace.
Leo stopped by to let them know that the final charges had been levied in the case of the officer. He’d simply agreed to look the other way for a fee. He did a little more once he was cornered. He panicked.
His benefactors were fans of the late Justin Harris. He’d been their idol, but as Kyla put it, there was only one Harris.
Matthew and Josie soon discovered that Kyla had a deep respect for Harris. She didn’t care for him, but she did respect him. It saddened her to know for certain that Harris wouldn’t have appreciated such a bungled attempt at retribution.
Over the next few days of peace, Kyla became the woman Matthew had always hoped she could be. Briana was certainly no help, but he understood at last that Kyla could never have been this woman without Joe in her life.
Eric started bringing a young woman named Olivia to the house on his frequent visits. He joked that he could never get serious about a woman until he knew Joe was taken care of. Matthew and Josie never doubted it for a second. If Kyla had an anchor to see her through until Joe appeared, it was perfectly reasonable that Joe had one, too.
Everyone involved was on his or her road to peace. Matthew was sure they would always be close, though their children would probably never know the whole story of their very interesting bond.
Chapter Forty
Endgame
Despite their nervousness, their wedding went off without a hitch. It was basically a Christian ceremony with vows they wrote themselves, white gold Celtic knotwork rings, and Father O’Shea presiding. In memory of her parents, Kyla added the gold cord stored with the dress into the ceremony.
Sarah and Carl came to the wedding, and Kyla hoped she had a chance of salvaging their friendship. It was after the late lunch before they found time to slip off to the kitchen and talk.
Kyla hugged her friend. “Sarah, you look wonderful. I’m so glad you’re here.”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” Suddenly, Sarah looked uncertain.
Kyla didn’t miss the change, but she decided to act as if she had to see where it was going. “So, what are you, eight months or so?” Kyla touched Sarah’s stomach, and she jumped. Kyla stepped back. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
“No. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be here.”
“Why?” Kyla asked, but she already knew the answer. She had made a connection of sorts. “It’s Carl, isn’t it? He doesn’t approve of everything that’s happened?”
Sarah smiled weakly. “He worries.” She looked away. “I worry. I have to.”
“You know I’d never hurt you,” Kyla ventured. “I never meant to hurt anyone. They wanted to hurt me.”
“That’s the problem. There will always be people who want to hurt you. That scares me, and it scares Carl.”
Kyla rubbed her forehead. “I think I understand. I know it’s over, but you can’t take that chance. I can’t blame you.” She sighed. “There’s a reason why we’re waiting for children ourselves. I guess this is something that’s going to happen. It’s time for it to happen. I wish it didn’t have to, but—” Kyla smiled weakly. “I guess all I can do is wish you luck. You’ll be a wonderful mother.”
Sarah turned to face her again. “I wish it could be different. You know I do.”
Kyla nodded. “Yes, I do. Give me a hug before you leave, and tell Carl I said to take care of you.”
Sarah nodded and hugged her lightly. “Good luck, Kyla. You’re a beautiful bride. I’ll write soon.”
Kyla knew it was a lie, but she smiled anyway. “Sure. Keep in touch.”
Sarah left the kitchen, and Kyla could picture her leaving with Carl.
Kyla reached out. “Goodbye, my friend. Take good care of her for me.” She barely felt the acknowledgement coming back her direction before she disconnected.
Kyla knew Carl and Sarah wouldn’t even give a backward glance, wouldn’t know she had sent at all. She heard the door close.
“The end of an era.”
Eric appeared in the doorway and took in the pensive look on her face. “Are you all right?” he asked.
Kyla waved it off and smiled weakly. “Yeah. Just one of those things.”
“Oh, you mean those things.” Kyla cracked a smile, and he continued. “I figured something was up when I saw Carl standing out there like a guard dog.”
“He’s not so bad. I hate him right now, but I’ll get over that.”
Eric glanced back down the hall. “They’re gone, huh?”
Kyla nodded. “They won’t be back.” She took a deep breath. “Guess it’s better to know who you can count on to be there, right?”
Eric sighed. “Too bad. She doesn’t know what she’s missing. I feel sorry for her.”
“Maybe she knows what she’s missing, but she doesn’t know what she’s screwing up.”
He looked at her with renewed interest.
“The doctor was wrong. Her baby is a boy.” Kyla smiled, as Eric choked. “And he’s going to be one psi handful. Think I should have warned her?”
Eric laughed heartily. “Guess not. Can I get you anything?”
“Yes. Grab me a Fresca while you’re over there, please.”
Kyla turned toward the sink to wash her hands. The bottle at the edge of the bar caught her eye. It was rum. She hadn’t bought rum.
Worse, it was open, and a quarter of the bottle was gone.
Kyla couldn’t breathe. Her mind wouldn’t function properly. Joe wouldn’t. Kyla knew that. Someone else must have brought it. Either way, she couldn’t leave it here.
She trusted Joe. She kept reminding herself of that. The fact that Kyla was panicked occurred to her only to be immediately rejected.
Kyla could hear Eric chattering on behind her and vaguely registered that he was telling her a joke. She opened the bottle and started pouring it down the drain. Eric moved into her peripheral vision and turned toward her. To her surprise, he lunged at her and jerked the bottle out of her hands.
“What are you doing?” she snapped at him. “I thought you’d understand.”
Eric grabbed the cap off the counter and twisted it back onto the bottle. He rinsed his hands, then the bottle under the water. He faced her. “I do understand. God help me, I do. You need to understand. Joe has to do this.”
“He didn’t.” Panic shot through her, as Kyla looked at the bottle.
“Of course not. I haven’t killed him, have I?”
Kyla managed a weak smile.
“He’s never going to feel worthy of you until he’s sure.”
“I don’t need that.”
“He does,” Eric said. “You trust him, right?”
She nodded uncertainly. Kyla did trust him, but she wasn’t acting like she did.
“Let him do this.”
Kyla nodded again.
“Let me ask you something.”
Kyla met Eric’s eyes.
“Why did you dump it?”
She laughed nervously. “Because I’m a little crazy sometimes.”
“Joe was right. You are scared. Why?”
Kyla wasn’t sure that she really knew why she was afraid. “I think for the same reason I was so afraid of Harris at first. It wasn’t near as much the threat to me. I had given up hope for myself. It was the threat to Joe. I know it’s a threat because I can hear when he thinks about it and how he pushes th
e thought away.”
Eric smiled. “It’s only a threat if you two let it be. When did you kick it in gear and get proactive instead of sitting back and waiting for Harris to come get you?” He only paused a second before launching in again. “When you got over the threat to Joe and started working as a team, remember?”
She nodded.
“That’s all you need now.”
Kyla smiled. “Every time I think I have you pegged, you surprise me.”
“I told you I’m just misunderstood. Now, wash that junk off your hands and drink your soda. Joe will be looking for you soon.” Eric kissed her cheek. “He did good this time.”
Eric left, and Kyla washed her hands. She considered everything that had happened over the last three months. Heather said she would understand eventually, but she still didn’t. “I’m never going to know, am I?” she asked aloud.
“Why do you think that?” Gram’s voice came from over her shoulder.
Kyla dropped her glass, and it clattered into the sink. She turned to face not only Gram but also Heather.
She shook her head. “Make some noise, will you,” she complained.
They laughed in reply.
“You two have been here all day?”
Heather nodded. “Yes, we saw. It was a beautiful ceremony, a nice melding of beliefs. I think you look better in that dress than I ever did, and I love that you used the cord.” She feigned disapproval. “I approve of your plans for later, but don’t use that cord,” she ordered.
Kyla blushed deeply. The joke she’d made about using the cord to tie Joe to the bed had been intended for his ears only. “Am I ever going to have privacy in my own life?”
Heather sighed. “Much sooner than I could have ever imagined. My time here is over. You’ve learned all you need to know, and your true soulmate is here. Joe was wrong, by the way. You are supposed to protect each other.”
Kyla felt her eyes sting. “You’re really leaving?”
Heather nodded. She reached out and touched Kyla’s cheek. Kyla realized that she really could feel it. It hadn’t been a drug-induced hallucination after all.
Heather nodded her agreement. “It’s very difficult, but when it’s necessary—”
Kyla nodded, and tears clouded her vision.
Heather smiled. “It’s your wedding day,” she chided. “No crying allowed.”
Kyla nodded and tried to pull back the tears.
“You’ve become more than I ever hoped for you. I dare say you would have had a smoother life with me, but perhaps not as full and rich.”
“But I did have you,” Kyla countered. “Now explain, please. I mean, if Father O’Shea, Cole and Bishop Brian weren’t— Who was I supposed to change?”
Gram smiled. “You mean you haven’t figured that out by now?”
Kyla grimaced. “No one else changed,” she complained.
Heather chuckled. “Joe did. If you search what you know of him— Ask Eric if you have to. He has changed.”
Kyla shook her head. “But Eric said he changed when he met me, before he met me even. Why the rest of this?”
Gram shook her head. “No, he had feelings for you, but he hadn’t changed essentially. He was still angry. He was still running. He just figured out the direction he should be running. He still had many lessons to learn.”
“Like what?” Kyla asked.
“When Harris attacked you, Joe prayed for the first time in half his life. He had no idea to whom he was praying but he found the words to beg for your life, and he meant it. Over the next few weeks, he learned self-control, patience, and how to admit that he not only believed in love again but had found it.”
Heather took over. “Every new attack taught him a new lesson. Eric intervened whenever he saw the need. He had a keen sense of what needed done. That was why he was afraid to let you in for so long.
“Eric stopped Joe from killing Stacie, and Joe restrained himself with Harris. You needed both of them to survive. Joe could have killed for you, but he wasn’t destined to. He had to learn to trust someone he had no reason to trust, if that’s what the situation called for.”
Gram continued. “When Jameson’s men came after you at the hospital, Joe was willing to let you walk away if it would protect you, remember?”
Kyla nodded uncertainly.
“He knew you’d be safer with the others than alone. It surprised him that he could do it, but it wasn’t even a question for him.”
Heather spoke again. “He learned how to be part of a family again. By the time the kidnappers came after you, he knew you and Eric weren’t the only ones in the world he cared enough to protect. He also learned that he couldn’t indulge in revenge. He learned that being with you meant sitting back and letting someone else do his job.”
Gram smiled. “Joe doesn’t realize it, but the test today is a moot point. His real test was while you were unconscious after that attack. If he didn’t crack, then, he never will.”
Kyla smiled and nodded gratefully.
“Eric lied when he said it was Leo’s idea not to give Joe a gun. It was Eric’s, but Leo thoroughly agreed with it. Joe had to realize there was another way, a non-violent way that he could use. There were other lessons, of course. There always will be. That’s life, but Joe has most decidedly become a different person.”
“Why Joe?” Kyla blushed deeply. “I mean, I know he’s worth it, but why would some deity go to this much trouble?”
Heather smiled. “I can’t presume to speak for my Goddess, but the gods work in strange ways. There are stories of people who are tested and people who inspire the gods to intervene for them. Maybe the gods see all, all that was and ever will be.
“Maybe you two were intended as a focus to bring hope and understanding to many who have forgotten their paths. Maybe a single person who had disavowed his path was worth saving. Don’t the Christians have a story about leaving the ninety-nine sheep to find the one that’s lost?”
Kyla nodded pensively. “People lose their way every day,” she ventured.
“Maybe those who really want to find a path, can. Joe gave up, but he still craved the way. You were struck by it many times.”
“The look he has sometimes? Like he’s in great need?” she asked.
Gram smiled. “Exactly. It wasn’t only your love he needed. He needed to find his way, to find peace. His soul knew you could lead him to peace.” She looked sad. “We may never know why the gods do what they do. Our time has come. We have to go.”
“I’ll never see you again, will I?”
“Not like this,” Heather admitted. “You never know. We’ll never be truly gone. Maybe we’ll meet again in your dreams. After all, I want to meet my grandchildren.”
Gram smiled. “I’ll be close by. After all, Molly will need my help for several years—and yours, from time to time.”
“How’s that going?” Kyla asked. She knew she was stalling, but she couldn’t resist the urge to spend a few more moments with her two mothers.
Gram laughed lightly. “I think the Ladies led me to you to prepare me for Molly. After all, if I could survive living with you, I can survive your training in another.”
“Don’t bet on it,” Kyla informed her.
All of them laughed heartily. Kyla heard a sudden rush of footsteps and looked over their shoulders toward the doorway. As Joe rounded the corner, they shimmered and faded into a gold mist. At first, Kyla’s heart sank. Joe stopped short and scanned the kitchen. Kyla knew he had seen them.
* * *
Joe was talking to Jason when he realized he hadn’t seen Kyla in quite some time. He scanned the room, but she wasn’t in the library. Eric came in from the hall. Joe took his leave from Jason and made his way to Eric. If anyone knew where Kyla was, it would be Eric.
“Have you seen Kyla?” Joe asked.
“She’s drinking a Fresca in the kitchen.”
Joe looked at him, trying to unravel his strange reserve, and started toward the hall.
> Eric snagged Joe by the collar as if he was playing but regarded him seriously. “Give her a few minutes, okay?”
Joe started to ask why, but the smell from Eric’s sleeve assaulted him. Joe met his gaze, as the other man let his hand drop away.
“Is that what I think it is?” he asked.
Eric nodded.
“What happened?”
“Just a little accident in the kitchen.”
“She didn’t throw it at you, did she?”
Eric laughed long and hard at that one. “No, but she could have. She was a little upset at the time.”
Joe shook his head and uttered a few curses under his breath.
“I explained it. She’s okay with it. You really should have warned her.”
Joe smiled weakly. “ I forgot. I had a few other things on my mind at the time. She’s really upset with me, isn’t she?”
“No, she was afraid for you. It’s hard to get out of the habit. It makes her a little crazy when she thinks you’re in trouble.” Eric sighed. “It’s like Harris. The only power he really had was what other people gave him. Power is an illusion. Once it’s been revoked, you realize it was never really there to begin with.”
“What did happen?”
“She tried to dump the bottle.”
“And you stopped her?” Joe couldn’t believe it.
“Yes. That’s when I ended up wearing it. She’s a lot stronger than she looks.”
“In more ways than you know, especially when she catches you off guard. Harris and I both learned that the hard way.”
“Anyway, she raged at me, and then we had a long talk. She understands why you need this. She doesn’t. All she needed was a fresh point of view.”
“Which was what?” Joe asked.
“As much as we both hate it, as much as we believe in you, you have to believe in you. We can’t give you that. It has to come from your heart and your mind.”
“And if I would have taken a drink out of that bottle?” Joe asked.
“You wouldn’t. You won’t.”
